Funkytown
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Funkytown is the name of a very popular song in 1980 by the disco band Lipps, Inc. The song expresses the pinings for a metaphorical place "that keeps [one] movin', keeps [one] groovin' with some energy" and is considered by many to be one of the last hit songs of the disco era.
The song was recorded in August 1979. The Minneapolis-based band consisted of Cynthia Johnson (singer), Terry Grant (bass), Ivan Rafowitz (keyboards), Peter Johnson (keyboards), Bobby Vandell (drums), Bobby Schnitzer (guitar), and Steven Greenberg (producer/writer). The hit song Funkytown reached the top of the charts by June 1980, and went platinum the following month. The group continued to record until 1985 with a changing lineup but never saw the success they did with their first hit. The song quickly came to symbolize the energetic, experimental Twin Cities music scene.
The song was a worldwide hit, and also reached number two in the United Kingdom, and #1 in Australia.
In 1987, it was covered by Australian band Pseudo Echo, who gave the song a different direction, moving away from the early eighties' electronica towards later eighties' rock, including a guitar solo in the middle. Pseudo Echo's version spent six weeks at #1 in Australia, ironically beating Lipps, Inc's one week.
It was featured on the soundtrack of the movie Shrek 2.
In the Parade of Nations at the 2006 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony, "Funkytown" was played as the Iranian Olympic team entered.